NIGERIA: Ikeja, Lagos: Yellow Chilli Restaurant - Nigeria cuisine

I was ecstatic when most of the family members read my last posting about my uncle and our big family. But attention has to be given about Nigeria..our here and now...

So let us begin...

After we bought our groceries, as usual between the two children...Fay would be feeling hungry first. Madam came to the rescue!!! She mentioned, there's a restaurant not far from our location (btw, her office is in Ikeja..so it's her turf) that serve local and international dishes. It was.....Yellow Chilli Restaurant, you can google them at www.yellowchilling.com

the facade of the restaurant, from the website

The location

The website is tastefully done. Clean and easy to navigate. They have the menu and price too! 

Can check the currency exchange at http://ahehafrika.blogspot.com/2015/08/nigeria-lets-talk-about-naira.html  (N100 ~ RM 1.80 or 2.00). 

You can contact them to make reservations (if you're in Lagos, ya)...no funny reservation made all the way from Kuala Lumpur or worse, Muar.

....the need to replace a societal norm that authentic Nigerian food could only be gotten in a shanty....

The Yellow Chilli Restaurant 

The following pictures were taken using a mobile phone camera...the not so nice ones were from me.

Aminu joined us for lunch. What a better way to enjoy your lunch with a trusted local to advise you on your choice of food. The waitress, Salomi patiently explained to us how hot (spicy) the food is going to be. Yes, these Nigerians eat very spicy or wanting a better word..tongue numbing, bowel lacerating food. It's very hot. 

Madam's family comes from a state in Malaysia that is famous for their Masak Lemak Cili Padi or Coconut cream with Birds Eye chillies..(sorry, got to check google for it..and that was the closest I could get), which can be quite hot. But compared to the local dishes here in Lagos or Nigeria in general, it is nothing. Food here is piping hot. Something to do with their pepper, Ato Rodo (I think). Ok, so from the menu I choose Nkwobi and Efo Riro. Both to eat with white rice. 

Trying to entertain herself

Since I was cautioned by the waitress of how hot it can be, we asked for a special drink called Chapman hoping to drown the heat.

Chapman

Nkwobi - diced cow leg in SPICY palm oil broth

Efo Riro - stir fry spinach and spicy tomato sauce, 
lightly seasoned with locust bean. Option: Beef added
Just looking at the picture above, I bet you can imagine
how hot it will be....A Yoruba delicacy (West and South West)

Madam ordered.....something very mild, very safe and certainly not adventurous enough. But I like the grilled banana. I don't think they do fried banana fritters, but instead they grilled the bananas. You can get them by the roadside. There's one in Ikoyi, will try it very soon..and let you know.

Jollof rice and fish in tomato stew

Aminu ordered.....Edikang Ikong (I think he ordered that dish) soup with...wait a minute...Snails!!! He ordered pounded yam to go with it. Looking for information about the dish he had, it was from the South East part of Nigeria (always refer from Abuja, smack in the centre of Nigeria...it was envisioned by one man, now on the N20 note)

The snails are huge...unlike the sea snail or 'mud creeper', siput sedut or belitung we called it in S.E Asia... 

Pounded yam 

two bald men with different reactions...

Then came the moment of truth...(btw the children had chips/fries)...the taste. The Nkwobi was spicy, like a very dry curry..but not curry tasting dish. The heat was manageable but Efo Riro....OMG..MashaAllah that tops the list of the hottest dish ever. It's like eating a bowlful of minced cili padi or Bird eye chilli cooked with tomato and beef... The taste was hot and hot all the way. It was hellish to finish it (come on, first time ok).. I was sweating profusely on my bald head within minutes. Luckily I managed to finish Nkwobi, but Efo Riro....I asked for it to be packed. Will finish it slowly during the following week. I would have Efo Riro with papadom and sweet soy sauce to tone down the heat. 

All in all, it was a good experience. The food was nice! I liked it. No problem for me to try it again next time. The place was OK, and the staffs were very helpful (from the security guard  outside the restaurant, to the waitress). No doubt Satish (another Malaysian working in Lagos,Nigeria) would be able to finish it easily. A Segamat (Johore, Malaysia) guy with voracious appetite for anything that is very hot. This restaurant would be the right one for him. Anyway, if any Naijas asks me if I tried any of their local dishes, I would just smile and say...Aheh